Fairport Harbor Senior Center a popular place; sees high demand for services, space
BRANSON MO NEWS:
Grand Central Station’s got nothing on the Fairport Harbor Senior Center.
Ever since its downtown Painesville counterpart closed its doors in 2015 to make way for the Lake County administration building expansion project, the demand for the Fairport Harbor facility’s services has been increasing steadily, according to the people who run it.
During a hectic March 15 interview at the center, 1380 East St., Director Chris Yano said its offerings and the number of people who want to take advantage of them have outgrown the building it calls home. This also was the case a little over a year ago when administrators there were about 3 1/2 years into a fundraising campaign to expand the place.
“The demand is growing steadily,” Yano said as she hustled around the kitchen there like a short order cook during the lunch rush late-morning on March 15. “Evening classes are growing in popularity. But we have no room to expand them.”
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She said the room where the pool table is located paints a typical picture of a day in the life of the facility.
“Our pool room is a good example,” she said. “Because, when we do Mahjong, we have to get the guys in there playing pool out of there because we don’t have anywhere else to put the Mahjong players.”
Another sticky situation is tax time, when the center offers free help to seniors who have questions about their filings. Thankfully, Yano said, Morley Library has offered up some space to help them accommodate that offering during tax season.
Connie Kauffman, president of the Senior Advisory Board for the Fairport Senior Center, concurred with Yano, adding that the organization has raised about $115,000 toward the estimated $700,000 an expansion would cost. But other issues have arisen, like the parking lot and its pothole-speckled surface.
“We have …
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